How to Use Excel: Getting Started

Excel is the most popular spreadsheet tool. This guide walks you through 10 essential operations.

1. Cells and Ranges

Click any cell to select it; drag to select a range. Ranges look like A1:B10.

2. Enter and Edit

Double-click a cell to edit; press Tab to move right, Enter to move down.

3. Auto Fill

Select a cell with a number and drag the fill handle to create a series (1, 2, 3...).

4. Formulas

Start with = for a formula: =SUM(A1:A10) adds up, =AVERAGE(B1:B10) averages.

5. Common Issues

  • Formula shows as text? Check the cell format is "General".
  • Numbers left-aligned as text? There may be a leading space or apostrophe.

Tools

Need to dedupe rows or convert Excel to JSON? Use the tools below — all run locally in your browser.